Raley’s Launches Innovation Set in 50+ Premium Stores, Invites Emerging Brands to Apply
We’re happy to share the launch of Raley’s new innovation set: Get Curious, including brands Raley’s Product Innovation Manager, John Lane, discovered at our SF Grocery Run!
What is Get Curious?
“The Get Curious Innovation Set is a way for us to showcase new and up and coming brands to our consumers to really spark curiosity with our shoppers.” John shared, “I love Startup CPG’s Grocery Run events. I found a handful of brands to launch in our new innovation sets that will be coming to a Raley’s store near you”.
Raley’s, which operates 124 stores in Northern California, is on a mission to prove that emerging brands can compete with large players, and they’re backing it up with internal performance metrics to guide future inline decisions. “We’re going to be doing 52 premium test locations to really give our Category Managers a chance to see true data and insights for what’s happening within our four walls”, shared John. These sets will be themed displays located front-and-center in each store.

One of the brands John met at SF Grocery Run, who will be hitting Raley’s shelves via Get Curious is KACE Tea, a fruit tea brand inspired by Taiwanese-style iced tea. “I grew up shopping at Raley’s, so seeing KACE Tea on those shelves is a full-circle moment. A big thanks to the Raley’s team for believing in what we’re brewing and helping us share it with the community in the right way”, shared Kyle Gillaspy, Co-founder KACE Tea.
Want to Apply to Be in the Get Curious Set? Here’s What You Need to Know:
- Each display will rotate every two months and feature unique themes that inspire discovery and basket-building. The first wave? Think globally inspired flavors, better-for-you beverages, and indulgent self-care – a trifecta of what’s hot right now.
- Raley’s is sourcing from both Pod and UNFI.
- If your brand earns inline placement, distribution will shift to UNFI.
- You should be ready to scale to up to 117 locations post-trial.
- All performance data will be reviewed by category managers before schematic decisions are made.
If you’re ready to get your brand in front of thousands of curious shoppers, reach out to John Lane at jlane1@raleys.com and mention you’re part of the Startup CPG community to get started. Got questions? Connect with John on LinkedIn for informal inquiries and insights.
About Raley’s
Raley’s is a privately-owned and family-operated customer experience grocery company headquartered in West Sacramento, CA. Raley’s operates 117 stores under four banners: Raley’s, Bel Air Markets, Nob Hill Foods, and Raley’s O-N-E Market.
About Startup CPG
Startup CPG is the biggest community in the world for emerging brands. We have a reach of 135K+, over 25k members in our Startup CPG Slack, and create millions of impressions per month. We host the #1 world podcast in CPG, 100+ events per year, the industry’s largest free award program, and will do anything to help brands grow and shine. It’s free — join today!
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